Japan Lodges Stern Protest over North Korea Missile Launch

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe condemned Wednesday North Korea's test-firing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile, saying that the launch was "unforgivable", and that his government had lodged a stern protest against the North. "It is the first time that an SLBM missile fell inside Japan's air defense identification zone. It is a grave threat to Japan's security and an unforgivable act to regional stability and peace," Abe told reporters. 

    With the launch clearly going against UN Security Council resolutions that ban North Korea from using ballistic missile technology, Japan has lodged a protest with the country, Abe said.

    An SLBM was launched in waters off Sinpo, South Hamgyong Province at around 5:30 a.m., flying some 500 kilometers into the Sea of Japan, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

Source: QNA